FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The 30th-ranked LSU women’s tennis team lost its second-straight Southeastern Conference match Wednesday in a 5-4 decision to the Arkansas Lady Razorbacks.
Arkansas improved its overall record to 5-9, 3-6 (SEC) on the season, while the Lady Tigers (10-7, 2-6) have dropped two matches this week on the road versus conference opponents.
Sunday LSU fell to the 20th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville, Tenn., 5-4, and Wednesday the Lady Tigers were defeated on the road in Arkansas, 5-4.
“It’s extremely tough to win on the road in the Southeastern Conference,” said LSU head coach Tony Minnis. “Every team has a huge amount of talent, and they all expect to win while playing at home. We are the exact same way a home, but we still have to get better on the road.”
The score was tied at three points apiece after the singles round. Winning for LSU was 11th-ranked Bruna Colosio, 68th-ranked Ana Paula Mores and freshman Lauren Haddix.
Colosio extended her winning streak to eight matches in a row by defeating Arkansas’ 19th-ranked Chin Bee Khoo, 6-4, 7-5, on court No. 1. In No. 2 singles, LSU’s Mores demolished Andrea Ho in straight sets without losing a game, 6-0, 6-0. Haddix defeated the Lady Backs’ Tara Reid, 6-2, 6-2, on court No. 5.
“Bruna, Ana, and Lauren played great tennis in singles today,” Minnis said. “I think that Fernanda (Tsucamoto), Mandy (Rice), and Tami (Botts) did a good job as well today. We just fell short in two close singles matches that would have changed today’s outcome if we would have won.”
Mandy Rice and Fernanda Tsucamoto were both defeated in three sets Wednesday against Arkansas. Rice lost the first set to Youlia Boyadjieva, 6-3, on court No. 6, but fought back to win the second set, 6-1. Boyadjieva held off Rice’s comeback in the third set with a 7-5 win.
Tsucamoto, LSU’s junior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, was also extremely close to picking up another point for the Lady Tigers. She lost the third set tiebreaker to Arkansas’ Adriana Lopez, 7-6(3), after winning the opening set, 6-4, and losing the second, 6-2.
In doubles play, the Lady Tigers’ 10th-ranked duo of Colosio/Mores defeated Ho/Khoo, 8-6, on court No. 1, but the Lady Backs’ secured the victory by winning on courts No. 2 and No. 3.
Amy McIlhaney and Tsucamoto were the Lady Tigers’ final hope against Arkansas, but the Lady Backs’ doubles team of Lopez and Brenda Vlasek held on to clinch the match, 8-6, on court No. 2.
The LSU Lady Tigers will next be in action April 1, as they host the Purdue Boilermakers at noon in the “Dub” Robinson Tennis Stadium.